


My Gift is My Song

by thetorontokid



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, Hurt No Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, I'm obsessed with the idea of Obi-Wan singing, With a smidge of Force weirdness thrown in, i'm sorry it's sad, thus this fic was born, yes it's BOTH
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:00:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,908
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23585767
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thetorontokid/pseuds/thetorontokid
Summary: Obi-Wan's gift to Anakin is a Mandalorian lullaby.
Relationships: Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 6
Kudos: 178
Collections: Jedi-Friendly, SW Especially Satisfying Stories





	My Gift is My Song

**Author's Note:**

> Because of the timing in the 2nd section, Anakin only knows that Obi-Wan was on Mandalore for a year. He finds out about Satine later (like in 'The Clone Wars'). 
> 
> I tried to keep this as canon-compliant as possible while throwing my own Force weirdness in.

**A Midnight Lullaby**

“Master?” Anakin’s small voice sounded even smaller in the silent night. He heard no snoring or even breathing - his master wasn’t sleeping either. On the surface Anakin knew this after stepping into his bedroom, but he knew Obi-Wan wouldn’t be asleep before he even entered. His master hadn’t slept since he lost his own master to a Sith just a few months ago. 

“Hmm?” Obi-Wan answered.

Anakin shuffled his small feet, “well, Master, it’s just...I can’t sleep.”

Obi-Wan rolled over to face him. The two stared at each other in the dark, their faces barely illuminated by the glow of Coruscant at night.

Obi-Wan pushed his blanket away and got off the bed, walking over to his young Padawan. “Okay, Anakin, I’ll sit with you for a bit,” Obi-Wan said as he put his hands on the boy's shoulders and led him back to his own room. 

Anakin shuffled back to his bed and hopped under the covers, pulling them close around his chin. Obi-Wan sat down on the bed next to him, back against the wall, extending and crossing his legs out in front of him. He wiggled and smirked, “move over will you, my arse is hanging over the side.”

Anakin giggled and shuffled further towards the wall. He suddenly felt a warm hand rest on his forehead. Calloused fingers brushed the short sandy-colored spikes back and forth. Anakin closed his eyes feeling calm and protected. 

He started to drift asleep until he heard a soft melody fill the space between him and his master. He was no longer interested in sleep. He wanted to hear the lullaby Obi-Wan was singing, even if he couldn’t understand it. 

He opened his eyes. It was morning and he was alone. The only indication that he hadn’t dreamt it all was the strange melody echoing in his head. 

**Aborted Plans**

Anakin was getting quite good at closing off the bond between him and his master. He never used it for nefarious purposes, but he had to admit it was fun to sneak up on Obi-Wan once and a while. His master always seemed so aware of where Anakin was and what he was doing, it felt like a bit of freedom. 

He used the Force to open the door to their suite very quietly.  _ Inappropriate use of the Force! _ he heard Obi-Wan’s voice in his head. Well, he wasn’t  _ wrong _ . 

Anakin had taken off his boots outside and left them by the door so he could sneak in his socked feet. He heard the sound of movement in their small kitchen - he knew Obi-Wan was making his beloved tea. 

As he got closer, he heard a soft melody which caused him to stop abruptly. It was the song from his sleepless childhood. The Mando’a lullaby Obi-Wan had learned on Mandalore.

His nights were still sleepless, but Obi-Wan didn’t always need to know that. Anakin didn’t need his master to sing him to sleep - he was too old for that now. But still...standing there listening - he realized how much he missed it, how much comfort it gave. He closed his eyes and listened.

“Anakin,” there was a tiny bit of surprise in Obi-Wan’s voice. 

Anakin’s eyes flew open. Obi-Wan was standing there in his pants and under-tunic, steaming mug of tea in his hand. There were dark shadows under his eyes and his hair was a bit ruffled. 

“Were you planning on sneaking up on me again?” Obi-Wan finally asked with a grin.

Anakin smiled, “I haven’t heard you sing in years.”

“Well…” Obi-Wan started. “There really has been no need, has there?”

Anakin looked down and shuffled his feet, for a second looking ever-so-much like the young boy newly-arrived from Tatooine. “I wouldn’t say that exactly, Master.”

  
  
  


**In The Tent**

Captain Rex, Commander Cody, and Anakin were all sitting around the fire that had been built outside General Kenobi’s tent. It was a very rare and cherished moment of peace and rest on the battlefield. Anakin had hoped his former master would take a break and join them, but once he finished eating, Obi-Wan decided to use the quiet to get a jump start on their mission reports. Ever the dutiful Jedi. 

Rex and Cody talked about the needs of their respective battalions while Anakin listened in, throwing in his opinion...even when he wasn't asked. Suddenly, over the crackling of the fire and the two almost-identical voices, Anakin heard it. He stiffened and turned his head towards Obi-Wan’s tent. This, of course, caught the attention of both battalion leaders.

“Sir?” Rex asked, sharing a glance with Cody. 

Anakin lifted his hand in a silencing gesture. “Listen,” he whispered. 

Rex and Cody stilled and finally heard what General Skywalker had caught. The gentle melody was coming from General Kenobi’s tent, and it was nothing like anything the troopers had ever heard. 

“It’s a Mandalorian lullaby,” Anakin kept his voice low. The clones weren’t raised on calming lullabies like Skywalker, and certainly neither had heard the high general sing before. They didn’t even know he could. The three men remained seated, transfixed by Obi-Wan’s voice and the warm glow of the fire. Rex and Cody had never felt more relaxed. Anakin once again closed his eyes. 

He felt younger, calmer, happier when he heard that sweet melody. If Obi-Wan only knew the power he had over Anakin with his song. 

  
  


**Aboard the Destroyer**

Lord Vader was known to roam the halls at night. None of his men knew what he was looking for, and none would ever be brave enough to ask. So he stalked and billowed and mouse droids and troopers alike scurried out of his way. He doesn’t sleep anymore. Not since Mustafar. Dreams about Padme, their unborn child, and his old master to plague him. They are relentless and uncaring. 

His walk around the destroyer yielded no ease, so he strode back to his cabin. Sitting at his desk, he started to work on the backlog of reports - he was never one for ridiculous paperwork then and it certainly wasn't part of his focus now. Paperwork belongs to the officers. Not one of the most powerful Sith Lords in the galaxy.

He was making progress, then he heard it. He jerked up, his heart pounding hard beneath the black armor. He strained to listen through the dark helmet he now relied on to simply breathe. 

He shook his head. It was impossible. 

The melody vanished. 

Just like Obi-Wan. He abandoned Vader on Mustafar. He had been unable to find the wily Jedi, despite his and the Inquisitorius' best efforts... but he knew he was certainly not on this ship. 

Vader leaned back in his chair staring off into the black through the transparisteel. Until the melody started again. He clinched his fist, instantly crushing the lamp on his desk. Standing abruptly, he also upset the desk itself strewing papers and datapads all over the floor. 

He KNOWS Obi-Wan isn't here. 

He knows that melody means nothing to him now. It can no longer calm him. In fact, it does quite the opposite. 

Vader wants to listen with ears unencumbered, but he knows he won't have much time. The mask clicks and hisses. Once it's completely removed, he wheezes and chokes on the cabin's recycled air. But there's no lullaby. 

He walks to his chamber door. He was about to leave without his mask, but that would have been a mistake he cannot afford to make. He places the mask back on and opens his door. Out in the hallway, he hears it again. It's faint, almost otherworldly, and he feels like he's going mad. 

What would Sidious think of him? He quickly shakes the thought away. He turns to his left to walk down the hall, chasing the sound. Suddenly, the song is coming from behind him. He turns slowly and comes face-to-face with Obi-Wan Kenobi. 

There are darker shadows under his eyes. His copper hair and beard are still there but now they're threaded with grey. Both are less fastidiously kept than when he was commanding an army - his hair falls to his jawline, his beard is ragged. His Jedi tunic - he's still wearing a  _ Jedi _ tunic - is tattered at the hem and singed in a few places along his chest and shoulders. 

Before he realizes what he's doing, Vader has unclipped his lightsaber and ignited the blood red blade. 

Obi-Wan lifts one corner of his mouth slightly.

The red blade slashes through air, and Vader is left standing alone in the cold hallway, a strange melody echoing in his head. 

_ Epilogue _

**On Tatooine**

Ben finally finds Luke, alone, curled up right inside the mouth of a cave two klicks from the Lars homestead. He wasn't sure if he would have ever found the child if it hadn't been for his bright Force signature. So like  _ his father's _ it nearly took Ben's breath away. He hadn't felt anything like it in so long.

He knelt beside Luke and looked him over in the waning daylight of the twin suns. No obvious scratches or injuries, he seemed unhurt.  _ Thank goodness for that _ . Though Owen would still be furious. 

Ben took off his cloak, wrapped Luke in it then picked him up and cradled him close against his chest. The boy still felt so small, though it was nothing like the last time he held him. But that was five years ago before, when he handed him to a smiling Beru.

"Tch," Ben said softly. "How did you get all the way out here?" He didn't expect an answer of course, Luke was still asleep.

Ben walked back to his eopie with the sleeping boy in his arms, and as he approached, Neda knelt slowly so he could mount easily. Of course, the boy woke with a whine as soon as Ben got settled. He clicked his tongue and Neda began the slow march to the homestead. Luke sniffled and continued to make small crying noises as they rode. "It's ok, Luke, I've got you," Ben whispered. 

He finally reached far into his more painful memories and found the one thing he hoped would help the boy: the old Mandalorian lullaby he used to sing to Anakin.

It had been years and years since he had even thought of it, he was surprised he still remembered the words. But if he was honest with himself, how could he ever forget that gift from Satine? 

He started low and soft, his voice feeling scratchy from disuse, especially for singing. But it seemed to do the trick when the cries and sniffles tapered off and Luke became silent once again. However, Ben himself suddenly felt that old overwhelming sense of grief settle in his chest. 

But then that grief turned into something much heavier, some odd, dark sensation in the Force. He pulled Neda to a stop when some vision of Darth Vader suddenly appeared in front of them. Ben felt the darkness close in around him, as well as anger and confusion, and was that curiosity, too? He flinched when Vader ignited his blood red blade.

Then Ben lifted one corner of his mouth, a mere ghost of a smirk, and Vader sliced through the air with his saber, connecting with absolutely nothing. 

He disappeared and Ben and Luke were alone once again. The Force felt open and clear and his ears were ringing. 

**Author's Note:**

> Listen, the clone troopers absolutely deserved to have lullabies sung to them as well. GIVE THEM SOFT THINGS.


End file.
